Book Clubs Across Borders is a 20-month virtual book club programme which connects secondary, higher secondary, and tertiary education students from 12 cities in Pakistan to 12 cities in Afghanistan.
Over the course of the entire programme, 360 participants will read 12 books through a total of 144 sessions connecting students based in Karachi, Islamabad, Peshawar, Hyderabad, Khairpur, Larkana, Swat, Faisalabad, Sargodha, Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Muzaffarabad are the cities participating from Pakistan and Kandahar, Parwan, Bamyan, Panjsher, Herat, Jalalabad, Nangarhar, Khost, Kabul, Balkh, Helmant, and Kunar are those from Afghanistan.
“Book Clubs Across Borders mainly aims to increase communication among and between Afghan and Pakistani youth with a focus on cultural and social issues while increasing their intercultural competence. The sessions thus far have allowed students to familiarize themselves with local and international authors as well as learn to articulate their complex experiences and understandings of society at large. We at CAP are proud to announce that at present we have completed the sixth quarter of the programme with 72 virtual book club sessions conducted so far. The virtual nature of the book clubs has made it possible for authors to join the discussions and interact with the students. So far we have been able to host Sabiha Rahman, author of ‘Threading My Prayer Rug’; Jamil Jan Kochai, author of ‘99 Nights in Logar’; Daniyal Mueenuddin, author of ‘In Other Rooms, Other Wonders; Amneh Shaikh-Farooqui, author Fearless: Stories of Amazing Women From Pakistan” said Aaliyah Tayyebi, Project Coordinator BCAB at Citizens Archive of Pakistan.
In addition, CAP is assisting the schools and participants by facilitating preparatory book club sessions with the CAP team prior to students’ sessions with their peers in Afghanistan. The conversations that follow evolve into rich discussions on the historical development of societies we live in as well as deep reflections on contemporary cultural issues. The success of the programme is reflected by the issues and questions raised by students during the sessions.
